Jui gaai chaak paak dong

"Outlaw Brothers" has three terrific fighting set-pieces within its first 40 minutes: the first showcases Frankie Chan (who is pretty dangerous with a broom!), the second is dedicated to Yukari Oshima, in the third they join forces. The fight choreography in these sequences is easily on par with (and highly reminiscent of) the Jackie Chan films of the same era: very fast, very intricate, and full of stuntmen falling from high places. In the middle section, the script bogs down. There is little action (apart from a car chase), and some pointless sequences involving secondary characters that add nothing to the film (like Sharon Kwok's brother). Finally, in the last 15 minutes the film rebounds with a few more high-standard fights, where nearly all the bad guys are white and their faces (if not necessarily their names) will be familiar to HK action buffs. Frankie is almost as good as the more famous Chan in this movie, Yukari has some awesome moves and wears some flattering outfits, and even Sharon Kwok gets a chance to show her bravery, but Michiko Nishiwaki is mostly wasted - she doesn't get involved in the action at all until the last 5 minutes or so. Hong Kong Legends have done their usual fine job in the DVD release of this film, from the slick transfer to the extras. (**1/2)